Digital web printers, commonly referred to as web presses, form images on both sides of a web. A given web press forms images in a first print zone on one side of the web at a first print station. Subsequently, the web is inverted, and the web press, at a second print station, forms another image on the other side of the web in a second print zone opposite the first. Typically, the two print stations are positioned end to end within the press. Such configurations lead to relatively large footprints and can be undesirable in environments with limited space.
Where the press uses ink to form the images, each side of the web is allowed to dry before that side is handled. Dry times depend on the type of printing. For example, ninety percent page coverage can require more dry time than ten percent coverage. Since the web moves through the press at a relatively constant velocity, dry times translate into distances. In other words, a print zone in which ink has been deposited travels a set distance before the print zone is handled and ink is deposited in an opposing print zone on the other side of the web. That opposing print zone then travels another set distance before being handled. The drying distances of conventional web presses are static and set with the presumption that maximum drying time is desired. Such static configurations are inefficient for applications such as text printing where little or no drying is called for.